WASHINGTON -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- President Bush vetoed an expansion of the federally funded , state-run health insurance program for poor children for a second time Wednesday , telling Congress the bill `` moves our country 's health care system in the wrong direction . ''

In his veto message , President Bush calls on Congress to extend funding for the current program .

In his veto message , Bush said the bill is almost a duplicate of the proposal he spiked in October .

`` Because the Congress has chosen to send me an essentially identical bill that has the same problems as the flawed bill I previously vetoed , I must veto this legislation , too , '' he said in a statement released by the White House .

The bill would have expanded the State Children 's Health Insurance Program by nearly $ 35 billion over five years , the same as the measure Bush vetoed October 3 . Track recent and historical presidential vetoes ''

The president had proposed adding $ 5 billion to the program and said the version he vetoed would have encouraged families to leave the private insurance market for the federally funded , state-run program .

Democratic leaders said the new version addressed Republican objections by tightening restrictions on illegal immigrants receiving SCHIP benefits , capping the income levels of families that qualify for the program and preventing adults from receiving benefits .

Though the measure had strong bipartisan support , it fell short of the two-thirds majorities needed to override a presidential veto in the House and Senate .

House Minority Leader John Boehner , R-Ohio , said Democrats were more interested in scoring political points with the veto than in reaching a compromise with Republicans .

`` We could have resolved the differences in his program in 10 minutes , if the majority had wanted to resolve the differences , '' Boehner said . `` This has become a partisan political game . ''

The program currently covers about 6 million children whose parents earn too much to qualify for Medicaid -- the federal health insurance program for the poor -- but who ca n't afford private insurance .

Democrats wanted to extend the program to another 4 million , paying for it with a 61-cent-per-pack increase in the federal tax on cigarettes .

`` What a sad day that the president would say that rather than insuring -LSB- millions of -RSB- children , ' I do n't want to raise the cigarette tax , ' '' said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi .

She called for a January 23 vote on whether to override the veto .

Meanwhile , Bush called on Congress to extend funding for the current program to keep the 6 million now covered on the rolls . E-mail to a friend

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President Bush : Measure is `` essentially identical '' to the proposal he vetoed before

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Bill would have expanded the State Children 's Health Insurance Program

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Bush : Measure `` moves our country 's health care system in the wrong direction ''

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Program covers 6 million children whose parents do n't qualify for Medicaid